What does Luke 21:24 mean?

This finishes Jesus' description of the fall of Jerusalem, which would happen a few decades later, in AD 70. Armies will surround Jerusalem. The only escape is to flee—and that isn't guaranteed. God will throw vengeance on His people for refusing their Messiah (Luke 19:41–44). Nursing and pregnant women will be particularly vulnerable (Luke 21:20–23). Some will die of famine and some by violent men. Many others will be taken captive.

Flavius Josephus was a Pharisee and rebel commander who fought the Romans in Galilee in AD 66. The Jews drove out the Romans until General Vespasian arrived with his greater army. Josephus was captured, but unlike many Jews, he was not killed. Vespasian made him a recorder; he traveled with Titus, Vespasian's son, on his march to conquer Jerusalem. Having seen the power of Rome's army, Josephus tried to convince the Jews to surrender. His efforts were futile.

While he was captured, many other rebel leaders in Galilee fled to Jerusalem. They soon realized the Jewish religious leaders, who were primarily Sadducees, did not hate the Romans. Angry with their lack of national pride, the Zealots killed many. A civil war ensued. Titus wisely besieged the city but did not immediately attack, letting the Jews thin their own population first. At one point, a faction even burned a storehouse of food that would have supplied the city for years.

Josephus recorded the events in The Wars of the Jews. He wrote that over a million were killed by both Romans and other Jews. Nearly a hundred thousand were taken captive, many sold into slavery. People who tried to flee Jerusalem were often slaughtered. According to a story reported by Josephus, at least one woman, starving because Jewish insurrectionists kept stealing her food, roasted and ate her baby son.

In AD 70, Titus led his army to breach the walls and take the city. The Jews were scattered across the world. They would not have a homeland again until 1948, after the Holocaust drove other nations to act on their behalf. Jerusalem is still not fully controlled by the Israelites; Muslims hold the temple Mount.

But Jesus promises this is not the end. One day, the times of the Gentiles will be over. Jesus will return and judge the nations for their wickedness. "The Son of Man [will come] in a cloud with power and great glory" (Luke 21:27). The Jews will look to their Messiah and be redeemed (Luke 21:25–28).